Tag: leica

At just under $900, the Mitakon is the only cost effective choice.Leica Noctilux, 0.95 Leica feel, Leica Price….The oldest member of the group and maybe the most legendary, Canon 0.95, 50mm, converted to M mount.

The “Noct”, the “Dream”, the “Dark Knight.” These are the fastest full frame lenses available that aren’t limited in some way (fixed focus, gazillion dollars, limited prod) . I’ve gathered them together and will attempt to get them on a level playing field. Many will shout the Mitakon Dark Knight is the only reasonable option! It is the only native FE mount. Will that make a difference? Is $10,000 (6,852,000 Somalians) too much for night vision? Is the “dream” a nightmare at 5k?

This is part two of my blog about fast 50 lenses. “All the tests and pictures here are done on the Sony A7r. It’s 36.4 megapixel sensor is demanding and shakes out anything not worthy. With the exception of some wide angle M mount lenses mentioned in previous articles, that suffer from severe vignetting and color fringing(that don’t perform on A7r), lenses that work on the 7r, perform great on the other 7 series cameras. These gems are not exceptions.

The Canon, Leica and Zhongyi, from left to right(order of sexiness!)

The Mitakon weighs the most of the three at 720g, followed by the Noctilux (700g) and the Canon (605g). None of the trio is lightweight. There is a price for the large aperture. The Noctilux is the only one of the three that has aspherical elements and a rear floating element. The Mitakon has 10 elements in 7 groups(extra glass explains +grams), the Noct, 8/5 and the Canon 7/5. Mitakon contains 4 extra low dispersion elements, the Noctilux has 5 partial dispersion lenses. The Mitakon will focus in half the distance of the others at 1/2 meter. The Noctilux does come in Silver. The Canon originally was in a bayonet mount particular to the Canon 7 camera. My copy was converted to Leica M mount by KevinCamera.

Those of you familiar with the last blog will recognize a similar test studio. I shot three apertures, 0.95, 2.8 and f/11 in the studio. Two remote locations, Auburn Regional Park(CA) and Nevada City, CA for real world photos. All the photos I took will be available on Flickr, but the really important ones will follow.

BOKEH

The Canon exhibits bell shaped orbs…which are common to Canon lenses of this era.The most clinical of the three, the “Dark Knight” is still very pleasant.The Leica has remarkable feel in both shape and presentation.The Leica just transitions so smoothly and creates feel without taking away from the shot.The Mitakon is a slam dunk if on a budget. It’s just plain good enough…There is a reason they call it the “Dream Lens.” Nothing quite like it!

One of the most difficult attributes to test is Bokeh. Finding the right conditions outside is challenging. These first shots are all focused on bottom of test chart for basic shape. Bokeh is such an individual preference, I find the Canon and Leica are both outstanding.

WIDE OPEN RESOLUTION The two relevant areas here are pretty basic, centers and edges. Most don’t expect the ultimate sharpness in a fast lens wide open. None of these broke that tradition. All three lenses show some mild vignetting. Nothing that isn’t correctable. Noctilux shows some purple fringing here. If there is a knock on the M mount lenses on the A7r… It’s purple casting. It’s slight on the 50mm, but present at wider apertures.

The cleanest edges here were on the Mitakon! While slightly less sharp in the center than the Leica, it beat both others in edge sharpness. The Canon shows more DOF coverage @ 0.95 than either. You can read some of the galaxy etchings in the crystal cube on the Canon which is in front of the flat background. They’re pretty fuzzy on the Noct & Mitakon. The Canon is the softest of the bunch in all locations of test chart.

The Leica & Canon show similar edge detail. A bit more contrast on the LeicaThe Mitakon has the edge here…

It’s hard to make out the crystal, but the etching (inside NASA’s known universe cube), is actually readable on the Canon which shows greater depth wide open (I have to allow for the possibility that with the M conversion, this lens may not be exactly at .95)

2.8 REASONS to Dream!

Some of you will no doubt just skip anything but the wide open analysis. Can’t really blame ya for that. It’s why you purchase this type of glass. However, 2.8 works for many scenes that just a touch more depth is needed. The Canon has this! Still a bit softer in edge detail, it has a big lead in DOF. A bit of orange fringing was present on the Canon. Mitakon stays the edge leader here with the Leica starting to pull away in the center.

BYE BYE BLACK SHEEP, F11

You won’t be dreaming anymore… the darkness of the Knight will be gone… The Leica really shows what two aspherical elements can do and that floating thingy… This is a marvelous lens stopped down. Sharpness is the league of Otus 55! Hell it should be for 10k. Canon shows some blue fringing on the edges. Mitakon, with the extra elements also pulls away from the Canon in center performance at this aperture. You shouldn’t give any negative points to the Canon here, it’s still damn sharp for a 54 year old lens and can hold it’s own on the 36mp sensor.

WHAT’S IT LIKE OUT THERE IN THE WORLD MOM?

The Noctilux is the most complete of the three. It should be for the price!Feel & more feel, certainly sharp enough, it’s dreamy quality is tough to beat!If your type of photography requires subject isolation and background feel, with some post processing, the “Dark Knight” is an alternative worth considering.

It has been my quest to not be boring in these two articles! Ton’s of test shots and the same scene over and over will be minimized (hard to avoid entirely).

Nevada City is a great place for shooting. It’s small enough that I can walk around, shoot, change lenses and walk around again. Being an old mining town, the buildings, streets and people… have character. My second venue, Auburn Regional Park had a kool little stream with some sun poking through. As you’ll see, the representation of each lens, and it’s feel/character are explored well.

First, above we look at the stream, each lens has a distinct look to it. The Mitakon gets squashed like a waterbug here in color rendering and contrast. It may be sharper on the edges, but it doesn’t have the feel of the other two. The next scene has more elements to it and some good bokeh opportunities.

The following photos you can judge for yourself which lens you prefer…

The Canon competes with the Noctilux for feel & character for sure. Is it’s lack of sharpness going to be a deal breaker on the new A7rII?The ZY Optics (Zhongyi) lens, with some Lightroom 6 adjustments, looks every bit the others…. maybeThere’s something about a Leica, it’s special, the way it renders, it’s ambiance, how it isolates. There are nothing else like them.An old rusted shutter on the side of Matteo’s Public in Nevada City shot with the Leica.That Leica feel again in an alleyway.The Canon shooting up past the windows at Three Forks Bakery and Brewing company.The Dream capturing some sidewalk dining on Commercial St.You’re definitely not screwing the pooch here with the Mitakon… After some tweaks, this lens performs great, although it’s not the natural the other two speed demons are…

CONCLUSIONS:

I thought this would be an easy selection, but I guess I was fooling myself. From a budget standpoint, there is one option, the Mitakon Dark Knight. It’s a tad heavier than the others, has enough glass inside to perform really well for any type of close up photography. I’ve tried it a couple times in larger landscapes, and it doesn’t perform. It takes some post processing to get additional feel from it’s shots. Wide open it’s very sharp edge to edge but starts to lose some of it’s strength as you stop it down. Anything under f 6 it’s dynamite!

The Canon “Dream Lens” is really stuck in the middle here. The softest of the three, it shows a unique perspective that can’t be found in any other lens made. This antique is marvelous on an A7r. It’s as distinctive physically as it is in photographs. I’m not alone saying it’s awesome being seen with this lens on the camera! With the upcoming A7rii, I’m afraid it’s lack of sharpness will be even more exposed. The Canon holds it’s own in larger scenes, keeping it’s sharpness as it stops down. Even at 50 plus years old, this is a better all purpose lens than the modern Mitakon.

Finally the Leica Noctilux… Sure you can scream that it’s not worth over 9k! Why would you buy a lens that’s not as sharp wide open as the 900$ Mitakon? My best analogy is a new Shelby Mustang is a really fast car that looks fantastic, but it’s not a Ferrari. The refinements that Leica brings are evident in quality, feel and character. The Noctilux is a complete lens, sharp as hell after f 2, and at smaller apertures, it breathes the rarefied air of Otus… It’s that good. When the scene allows I’d shoot it as a landscape lens which isn’t true of the Mitakon or the Canon really(better, but not great). If price isn’t an object, then this is the clear choice of the three. You really get what you pay for here.

Upper center of frame has purple bands on high contrast areas with bright light behind it…

ADDENDUM to the Leica review. I didn’t come up in any of the scenes during my review, but further use has showed the Noctilux has purple banding near the center of the frame on darker objects with bright light behind it. I haven’t tested it enough to know if it’s at all apertures, but wide open, and at 1.1-1.4 this exists and is a huge disappointment on an otherwise wonderful lens. I am getting a copy of a Kolari Vision thin sensor stack replacementA7r and will do further tests.

If I have to rank the three based on all criteria…. The Mitakon, Noctilux, then the Canon, in that order. The Noct just isn’t practical for most, the Canon really is a specialty piece of glass, and unless you need your 50mm to be a primary landscape lens, the Mitakon wins easily. My personal view…. save your money and buy a used Noct one day!!!! Look for a Canon & Mitakon on ebay soon… Til the next time, ET

In an effort to find the best lenses out there for the A7r, I put forth a simple open source Google sheets spreadsheet guide, that has started to take off! Starting with my own collection it’s now close to 80 lens profiles! The “UN-Official A7r Non Native Lens Guide” is public access, anyone can add a lens to it. It is deliberately kept very simple with few headings with only short notes on each entry. Essentially a quick reference guide to see if the lens you’re considering for your A7 series camera is worth investigation! WE ask that people who participate keep it simple…. If two people have different experiences, just add them. It’s not to argue, debate or judge.

Many wonderful legacy & modern options have made it on the list,

Canon FD 50mm 1.2L

Voigtlander 50 F1.1 Nokton

Zeiss Apo Distagon, Otus 55mm 1.4

Minolta Rokkor MC, 58mm f1.2

Mitakon 50mm 0.95 Dark Knight Edition

…. plus many more

The Sony A7 series is such a wonderful system with a litany of glass available, it seemed a natural fit to make this resource guide. Never is it to be used for profit and it’s link is easily accessed in many Sony A7 related Facebook Groups.

I do ask that anyone sharing this guide please copy a link to my blog, webpage or both. I do have ongoing aspirations to be known as a Fine Art landscape photographer and some of my work has caught a bit of recognition. I look forward to additional comments and suggestions!

There are so many soothing lens options for the A7/A7s/A7r until additional FE lenses come out. I do enjoy playing the villain a bit with the FE lineup. Yes, I’ve complained pertinaciously(see definition, fits perfectly), but I do have faith that Sony, Zeiss, perhaps Sigma, or others like Rokinon, Samyangetc. will drop in another hole in one (like the FE 55mm 1.8.), specifically tailored for the FE Mount. I’ve composed a pretty good list, which is always subject to debate and taste, of the lenses I use and other standouts. Most have to take screw in filters. I photo a lot of water and need polarisers. I won’t deal with back filters or Lee systems etc. I’ve seen guys tape tinted glass on their cameras…. not for me. All lenses on the list have a DXO mark rating of 27 or higher. 27 seems to be the cut off from ordinary. Finally, full frame capable. Going to cropped for some extra range is nice at times, but basically want all the picture you can get.

First the wide angles.

The Zeiss Distagon, 15mm 2.8 Cost, $2950… is considered by many, the best wide angle ever made. See Ken Rockwell, the Digital Picture, 3d-Kraft. There is even a M mount version $3900+/-, that’s slightly smaller than the Canon ZE, or Nikon ZF.2. I believe at this time, only the Canon version, with Metabones or RJcamera smart adapters($269-$399), will show all data in the camera and are full frame compatible. The filters, $200-$300 ea. It’s the best, what can you say?

Since the A7’s have come out many people like to throw the 14mm f/2.8 Rokinon/Samyang/Bower, etc into the mix. It’s a low price alternative, around $400. It takes no filters and has high distortion(can be alleviated fairly well in post processing). Image quality and resolution seem very good. It weighs less than the Zeiss and looks like a fun lens. There is a Canon version that will transfer data through the adapter.

If you’re a Leica fan, and I’d love to try this lens, the Leica 21mm f/3.4 Super Elmar M Lens $2995. It does take filters(46mm), it’s the most lightweight of the three. You will need an M to Sony NEX adapter. Manual focus only.

The 35mm range

The Sigma, Art 35mm 1.4 DG, So far, in limited use this lens is crisp. In larger landscapes you sacrifice some DOF by topping out at F16, as the Cape Flattery shot illustrates. I’ve seen some incredible shallow DOF shots in the forums. The three following shots at our new restaurant, highlight the lens capabilities wide open.

It’s not a light lens @ 665 grams. Cost $900, takes 67mm filters. It has a very good price to quality value. You can buy any Sigma lens with a Sony A mount, which when coupled with the La-e4 adapter has excellent AF.

Next on the list has to be the Native, Zeiss Sony 35mm, FE Sonnar T*, 2.8 ZA. This lens would have been a slam dunk choice if it had the quality of the Sonnar 55mm. It rates significantly lower than the Sigma, 33 to 43, although it is a very high quality performer. It’s still a moderately fast lens, and weighs next to nothing @ 4.23 ounces. Only…$800

Several manual focus gems are out there and if anyone would like to loan one to me…. the Voigtlander 35mm F1.2 Nokton Leica, Leica Summilux-M 35 mm f/1.4 ASPH or theLeica-Summicron M 35mm f/2 Asph. Read the Gear Patrol review on 35mm lenses for additional info.

I can’t drive 55…mm

Thanks Sammy Hagar. The 55mm, FE Sonnar T* 1.8 ZA pretty much ends this conversation about 55mm lenses for the A7’s. Best auto focus 55mm ever tested according to DXO, SonyAlphaRumors. Shoots outstanding video with all three cameras. The only lens better is the OTUS, 55mm. The Otus is a tank(3 1/2 times the size of the FE), has close to perfect optics and is manual focus. In four Sony Facebook Groups, only 55 talked about… is the FE.

Macro lenses…. oh soo close…up

There’s too much territory to cover in great detail in this class, but here are some awesome choices!

I’m lucky enough to own three of these lenses. My backup camera is a 5D mk III and two of them fit that camera too. Today on a budget I’d track down a Minolta. It was produced in a Sony E mount and should be a rock star on the A7r with a Le-a4 adapter.

Can we get some Zoomage please!

This is by far the hardest category and the most controversial. Forum wars with comments near a 100 per thread, are common. This series started out over disappointment in the Native 28-70 FE kit lens, and the Zeiss Sony 24-70 Vario Tessar T* FE F4. The 24-70 Tessar is damn good in the center, comparable with any of the lenses. It just loses clarity on the edges, which is really bad for a landscape photographer!

Hope springs eternal on the about to be released FE 16-35mm F4. Sony did well in their “G” 70-200 FE lens(see DXO comparison of these native FE lenses). It’s good edge to edge, has excellent resolution, and AF on the A7s & A7 is fast. It’s certainly worthy of leaving the other macro lenses at home and getting great shots if you want to go light. For now I’ve put my money into a Sony Vario-Sonnar T* 16-35mm F2.8 ZA SSM, $1600, plus the La-e4 adapter. The Sonnar T* design really shines edge to edge. It will arrive Thursday and hopefully I will report nothing but rave reviews!

Several other zooms have to be considered. The Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM $1400which I’ve used extensively on the 5D Mk III, is a wonderful lens. It looks like the most popular lens in the Sony Forums as well. Price to value is very good.

Another choice that is more budget friendly is the Sigma 17-35mm F2.8-4 EX DG Aspherical HSM, $350

Conclusions and final thoughts!

There are many other lens options that work very well on this system. One forum going pointed out that the old Canon FD lens with adapter are another wonderful choice. They are expensive in the open market, but if you run into one, grab it and get the Canon FD to Nex adapter(there are several inexpensive alternatives). The optics from what I’ve researched are outstanding and there is a variety of focal lengths.

I don’t talk much about Nikon glass. Until someone puts out a Nikon “smart” adapter, they remain manual focus with no information transferred to the camera. Nikon’s best lenses are well known, ez to research and are great choices in many cases.